1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to golf putting practice guides that are placed on the ground between a golfer and a golf ball to physically and visually guide a proper putting stroke during training exercises.
2. Description of Prior Art
Numerous prior U.S. patents show a wide variety of golf putting guides, including visual guides and physical guides. The visual guides provide marks for placement of a golfer""s feet and the ball, and may include lines or arcs indicating a path of a club head for various strokes and golfer statures. The physical guides channel a club head along a desired stroke path by providing a physical channel or barrier, between or along which the club head moves, and/or by other restraints such a tethers.
However none of the prior devices provides physical and visual guidance of the heel of a golf club head along an ideal swing path combined with visual guidance of the club face alignment, such that the club shaft and head rotate in unison about a single predetermined axis to generate a perfectly rotating putting stroke throughout the foreswing and follow-through.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,409,688 of Edgar discloses a golf stroke practice device that physically guides the toe of the golf club head along a desired arc on the foreswing. There are two basic problems with this approach. First, the toe of a golf head is more easily torqued by friction against a guide than is the heel, thus easily twisting the club out of alignment. Second, Edgar""s guide cannot provide the same arc on the follow-through, because the guide would approach the path of the ball. This could cause the ball to strike the guide, or cause a golfer to unconsciously pull the stroke to miss the guide, rather than performing a perfect, symmetric stroke. Thus, on Edgar, the guide arc ends at the ball and becomes a straight line on the follow-through. This is not ideal or complete guidance.
Other golfing stroke guides in the prior art have a variety of disadvantages particular to each one, never reaching the simplicity, convenience, practicality, and completeness of the present invention. None of them have the type of club face alignment marks provided by the present invention for eliminating rotation of the club around a second rotation axis along the club shaft that tends to occur during a stroke.
The main object of this invention is to provide a golf putting practice device that physically and visually guides a proper putting stroke during training exercises. The putting stroke to be produced is such that the club shaft and club head rotate in unison about a single axis that passes through a point between the shoulders of a golfer. This moves the club head in a circular arc tangent to the ground in a plane that is angled from the vertical.
A further object is lateral symmetry that allows the guide to be used equally well by left-handed and right-handed golfers. A further object is convenience in handling and carrying the guide to a practice site, and in storing the device compactly. A further object is a high degree of sturdiness. A further object is simplicity of construction. A further object is minimum production cost.
The objectives of the present invention are achieved by provision of a golf putting guide that is placed on the ground between a golfer and a golf ball. It has a vertical front surface facing the ball that is part of the vertical projection of a swing circle of the club head. The heel of the club head slides along the front surface of the guide in a planar swing circle that is centered between the golfer""s shoulders. The top surface of the guide is marked with a series of club face alignment marks, each of which is a line that extends perpendicularly backward from an imaginary line tangent to the elliptical top front edge of the guide. These marks visually guide the alignment of the club face as it moves along the front surface of the guide. This guides the stroke such that the club shaft and club head rotate in unison about a single axis that passes through a point between the shoulders of the golfer.